i thank You God for most this amazing day:for the leaping greenly spirits of trees and a blue true dream of sky; and for everything which is natural which is infinite which is yes
(i who have died am alive again today, and this is the sun's birthday; this is the birth day of life and of love and wings: and of the gay great happening illimitably earth)
how should tasting touching hearing seeing breathing any--lifted from the no of all nothing--human merely being doubt unimaginable You?
(now the ears of my ears awake and now the eyes of my eyes are opened)
Explication: E.E. Cummings was a mastermind when it came to beautiful, vivid descriptions of nature. In his poem i thank You God, Cummings expresses his gratitude to God and for the beautiful day he has been blessed with. The glowing objects around him, the trees, sky, clouds and sun simultaneously put him at ease and create an eruption of thoughts and gratitude for the beautiful day he has been given. With a day such as this (I imagine it to be a day in late spring, early summer), Cummings comments that his senses have all been opened to the world around him, and he is finally realizing the beauty of nature. He references the trees, the sky, the sun, and the "great happening illimitably earth", using vivid imagery such as "the leaping greenly spirits of trees" to emphasize the sheer beauty and brightness of a fresh green tree in springtime. He also uses imagery to describe the sky, a perfect "blue true dream of sky", or the kind of sky we only see in Hollywood movies. Lastly, his imagery of the "gay great happening illimitably earth" paints a vivid scene of a big and bold planet Earth standing before you, such as if you are looking at it from space. This image reminds me of the image "Earthrise", taken by William Anders in the 1968 Apollo 8 mission to the Moon. This photograph was named the "most influential environmental photograph ever taken." However, this poem has more than simply a literal meaning saturated with imagery. There is a hidden meaning in the poem. The poem, “i thank You God for most this amazing” by E.E. Cummings, displays the shift from the ‘denied’ to the ‘accepted’. There is a change in the world as the speaker views it with new “eyes”. By removing the sections of the poem that are closed by parenthesis, only two stanzas will remain, with one containing the word “yes” and the other containing the word “no”. These two words, often used as comments or answers, are being used as nouns, employing a new idea of "just" and "unjust. He references the "no of all nothing", meaning those who are meek and humble, treated unjustly in the world. Cummings compares this to that which is just, "everything which is natural which is infinite which is yes", or all that God has created here on Earth. Cummings also uses the lowercase "i" in order to emphasize the mere mortality of human beings in comparison to God, the Alpha Omega, beginning and end. Cummings poem i thank You God highlights the beauty of nature and all that has been created by God in a way that vividly illustrates what he is talking about, while also employing a deeper meaning of justness in the world and the mortality of humans. He paints this image to emphasize that we should appreciate all that we have been given instead of manipulating it for our own benefit, because we will eventually die and lose all of the beauty of the world.
If freckles were lovely, and day was night, And measles were nice and a lie warn't a lie, Life would be delight,-- But things couldn't go right For in such a sad plight I wouldn't be I.
If earth was heaven and now was hence, And past was present, and false was true, There might be some sense But I'd be in suspense For on such a pretense You wouldn't be you.
If fear was plucky, and globes were square, And dirt was cleanly and tears were glee Things would seem fair,-- Yet they'd all despair, For if here was there We wouldn't be we.
Explication: E.E. Cummings In the poem If, Cummings uses a series of if's to describe how our lives could be different if things weren't exactly how they are. Common items, such as dirt, tears and freckles are juxtaposed with the past, truth, and Earth to create a worldly sense in the poem. Cummings expresses this idea through a series of similarly structured lines to emphasize how fickle the world around us really is. This poem's meaning is written on its sleeve. We are driven to make certain decisions about ourselves, those around us and the world we live in based on the little details of our lives. However, in this poem, Cummings questions the details of our lives and their effect on not only us but on "we" as a society or a population. E.E. Cummings also explains through this poem why wishing things were different is a losing game, and that it takes understanding that things are the way they are supposed to be, and that wishing otherwise is a wish we wouldn't really want fulfilled, unless we want to completely change who we are. The structure of this poem also contributes to the meaning of the poem as a whole. The structure is simple and straight forward, and any variation of the structure would alter the simplicity of the poem. In my opinion, Cummings purposely adds this simple, almost Shakespeare-like structure and rhyme scheme in order to create a sense of the cleanliness and simplicity of life as we know it today, with every single detail lined up just the way we are used to it. If any single detail in the poem changed, just as if any detail in life changed, the poem would not be the same, just like we would not be the same.
maggie and milly and molly and may e.e. cummings
maggie and milly and molly and may went down to the beach(to play one day)
and maggie discovered a shell that sang so sweetly she couldn't remember her troubles,and
milly befriended a stranded star whose rays five languid fingers were;
and molly was chased by a horrible thing which raced sideways while blowing bubbles:and
may came home with a smooth round stone as small as a world and as large as alone.
For whatever we lose(like a you or a me) it's always ourselves we find in the sea
Explication: In "maggie and milly and molly and may", e.e. cummings truly showcases his ability to insert forceful and crafty literary devices into his poems. Notice the alliterations throughout the poem (i.e. maggie, milly, molly, may; shell, sang; blowing, bubbles, etc.). These add emphasis to certain words, phrases, or stanzas in the poem, adding to a deeper meaning in the poem. Cummings also uses his famous parenthesis to highlight certain parts of the poem as well as create a more poetic, smooth feel to the piece as a whole. When delving deeply into this poem instead of merely skimming the surface, the poem does not only tell the story of four girls at the beach, but shares a piece of each girl and their personalities. The first stanza is self-explanatory. Four girls went down to the beach to play. In the second stanza, the readers meet maggie, who seems to have much on her mind. The beach helps her to soothe her troubles and bring her joy. This is symbolic of how we all have our own special place where we can relax and forget our troubles, whether it is the beach, the mountains, our homes, or in the arms of someone we love. The third stanza introduces us to milly. As seen in the poem, she is thoughtful and compassionate, befriending a small sea creature that she probably saved from death or a fatal situation, such as being stranded on the beach. This is symbolic of how throughout our lives, we have all helped others, and sometimes by this kind act we have made lifelong friends. This is also symbolic of the opposite, how those who have helped us have shaped our lives and become friends we will never forget. In the fourth stanza, the readers not only meet molly, the third little girl, but a "horrible thing which raced sideways while blowing bubbles". It is assumed that this is merely a beach crab, but molly is terrified by the animal, symbolizing the vulnerability of human beings and how we run away from the scary things and problems in our lives rather than trying to overcome our fears. Lastly, in the fifth stanza, we are introduced to may, who seems to be the youngest or smallest in the group. To her, the world is large and overwhelming, and the "smooth round stone" she finds is the only comforting piece of the large beach and even larger ocean that she can find. The last stanza wraps up the whole poem and generalizes it so that all readers and even Cummings himself are included in the magic and wonder that the sea brings to human beings. Although we may lose ourselves in the day-to-day rush or the overwhelming troubles we face, we can always find ourselves in the sea.
i carry your heart with me e.e. cummings
i carry your heart with me(i carry it in
my heart)i am never without it(anywhere
i go you go,my dear; and whatever is done
by only me is your doing,my darling)
i fear
no fate(for you are my fate,my sweet)i want
no world(for beautiful you are my world,my true)
and it's you are whatever a moon has always meant
and whatever a sun will always sing is you
here is the deepest secret nobody knows
(here is the root of the root and the bud of the bud
and the sky of the sky of a tree called life;which grows
higher than the soul can hope or mind can hide)
and this is the wonder that's keeping the stars apart
i carry your heart(i carry it in my heart) Explication: One of e.e. cummings' most famous quotes comes a speech he made in 1950, saying "Unless you love someone, nothing else makes any sense." E.E. Cummings was a lover, not a fighter. He wrote about hopeless romance, unyielding happiness, and beautiful scenes of nature and God's grace. In the poem "i carry your heart(i carry it in my heart), Cummings makes obvious his fascination with romance and love. He develops the image of a love that is untouched by by the outside world and negativity.The first stanza introduces the love that we see flourishing in the poem. Cummings use of enjambment only intensifies this growing emotion by reducing the space or punctuation between thoughts in the poem. He also shows his vulnerability when he states that he "fear[s] no fate" for if he loses the love of his life, he will have no fate. This is a simple human fear, that we will have no fate and future. In the second stanza, Cummings reveals to the reader a "deepest secret nobody knows". Through use of juxtaposition of different elements of nature combined with repetition of structure, also known as syntax, in the sentence surrounded by parenthesis, Cummings shows us a great wonder of his. He relates the wonder of how the stars can stay apart from each other to his own inability to stay away from the person he loves. Cummings wants nothing but his lover forever, for she is his world. He also references nature, such as the moon, sun, roots, buds, and the sky to emphasize the everlasting beauty and grace of the love that he is sharing with us. Cummings is famous for his use of nature references to enhance his writing and create lasting images in his poetry.Lastly, he ends the poem with a seemingly simple line. However, he is not only restating the first line of the poem, but repeating this line to create further emphasis on the meaning of the poem, that no matter where he goes or what happens in life, he will always carry the love of his soulmate with him.
e.e. cummings
i thank You God for most this amazing
day:for the leaping greenly spirits of trees
and a blue true dream of sky; and for everything
which is natural which is infinite which is yes
(i who have died am alive again today,
and this is the sun's birthday; this is the birth
day of life and of love and wings: and of the gay
great happening illimitably earth)
how should tasting touching hearing seeing
breathing any--lifted from the no
of all nothing--human merely being
doubt unimaginable You?
(now the ears of my ears awake and
now the eyes of my eyes are opened)
Explication:
E.E. Cummings was a mastermind when it came to beautiful, vivid descriptions of nature. In his poem i thank You God, Cummings expresses his gratitude to God and for the beautiful day he has been blessed with. The glowing objects around him, the trees, sky, clouds and sun simultaneously put him at ease and create an eruption of thoughts and gratitude for the beautiful day he has been given. With a day such as this (I imagine it to be a day in late spring, early summer), Cummings comments that his senses have all been opened to the world around him, and he is finally realizing the beauty of nature. He references the trees, the sky, the sun, and the "great happening illimitably earth", using vivid imagery such as "the leaping greenly spirits of trees" to emphasize the sheer beauty and brightness of a fresh green tree in springtime. He also uses imagery to describe the sky, a perfect "blue true dream of sky", or the kind of sky we only see in Hollywood movies. Lastly, his imagery of the "gay great happening illimitably earth" paints a vivid scene of a big and bold planet Earth standing before you, such as if you are looking at it from space. This image reminds me of the image "Earthrise", taken by William Anders in the 1968 Apollo 8 mission to the Moon. This photograph was named the "most influential environmental photograph ever taken."
However, this poem has more than simply a literal meaning saturated with imagery. There is a hidden meaning in the poem.
The poem, “i thank You God for most this amazing” by E.E. Cummings, displays the shift from the ‘denied’ to the ‘accepted’. There is a change in the world as the speaker views it with new “eyes”. By removing the sections of the poem that are closed by parenthesis, only two stanzas will remain, with one containing the word “yes” and the other containing the word “no”. These two words, often used as comments or answers, are being used as nouns, employing a new idea of "just" and "unjust. He references the "no of all nothing", meaning those who are meek and humble, treated unjustly in the world. Cummings compares this to that which is just, "everything which is natural which is infinite which is yes", or all that God has created here on Earth. Cummings also uses the lowercase "i" in order to emphasize the mere mortality of human beings in comparison to God, the Alpha Omega, beginning and end.
Cummings poem i thank You God highlights the beauty of nature and all that has been created by God in a way that vividly illustrates what he is talking about, while also employing a deeper meaning of justness in the world and the mortality of humans. He paints this image to emphasize that we should appreciate all that we have been given instead of manipulating it for our own benefit, because we will eventually die and lose all of the beauty of the world.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=u94zGAy0YMM&feature=related
by Eric Whitacre
If
e.e. cummings
If freckles were lovely, and day was night,
And measles were nice and a lie warn't a lie,
Life would be delight,--
But things couldn't go right
For in such a sad plight I wouldn't be I.
If earth was heaven and now was hence,
And past was present, and false was true,
There might be some sense
But I'd be in suspense
For on such a pretense
You wouldn't be you.
If fear was plucky, and globes were square,
And dirt was cleanly and tears were glee
Things would seem fair,--
Yet they'd all despair,
For if here was there
We wouldn't be we.
Explication: E.E. Cummings
In the poem If, Cummings uses a series of if's to describe how our lives could be different if things weren't exactly how they are. Common items, such as dirt, tears and freckles are juxtaposed with the past, truth, and Earth to create a worldly sense in the poem. Cummings expresses this idea through a series of similarly structured lines to emphasize how fickle the world around us really is. This poem's meaning is written on its sleeve. We are driven to make certain decisions about ourselves, those around us and the world we live in based on the little details of our lives. However, in this poem, Cummings questions the details of our lives and their effect on not only us but on "we" as a society or a population. E.E. Cummings also explains through this poem why wishing things were different is a losing game, and that it takes understanding that things are the way they are supposed to be, and that wishing otherwise is a wish we wouldn't really want fulfilled, unless we want to completely change who we are.
The structure of this poem also contributes to the meaning of the poem as a whole. The structure is simple and straight forward, and any variation of the structure would alter the simplicity of the poem. In my opinion, Cummings purposely adds this simple, almost Shakespeare-like structure and rhyme scheme in order to create a sense of the cleanliness and simplicity of life as we know it today, with every single detail lined up just the way we are used to it. If any single detail in the poem changed, just as if any detail in life changed, the poem would not be the same, just like we would not be the same.
maggie and milly and molly and may
e.e. cummings
maggie and milly and molly and may
went down to the beach(to play one day)
and maggie discovered a shell that sang
so sweetly she couldn't remember her troubles,and
milly befriended a stranded star
whose rays five languid fingers were;
and molly was chased by a horrible thing
which raced sideways while blowing bubbles:and
may came home with a smooth round stone
as small as a world and as large as alone.
For whatever we lose(like a you or a me)
it's always ourselves we find in the sea
Explication:
In "maggie and milly and molly and may", e.e. cummings truly showcases his ability to insert forceful and crafty literary devices into his poems. Notice the alliterations throughout the poem (i.e. maggie, milly, molly, may; shell, sang; blowing, bubbles, etc.). These add emphasis to certain words, phrases, or stanzas in the poem, adding to a deeper meaning in the poem. Cummings also uses his famous parenthesis to highlight certain parts of the poem as well as create a more poetic, smooth feel to the piece as a whole. When delving deeply into this poem instead of merely skimming the surface, the poem does not only tell the story of four girls at the beach, but shares a piece of each girl and their personalities.
The first stanza is self-explanatory. Four girls went down to the beach to play. In the second stanza, the readers meet maggie, who seems to have much on her mind. The beach helps her to soothe her troubles and bring her joy. This is symbolic of how we all have our own special place where we can relax and forget our troubles, whether it is the beach, the mountains, our homes, or in the arms of someone we love. The third stanza introduces us to milly. As seen in the poem, she is thoughtful and compassionate, befriending a small sea creature that she probably saved from death or a fatal situation, such as being stranded on the beach. This is symbolic of how throughout our lives, we have all helped others, and sometimes by this kind act we have made lifelong friends. This is also symbolic of the opposite, how those who have helped us have shaped our lives and become friends we will never forget. In the fourth stanza, the readers not only meet molly, the third little girl, but a "horrible thing which raced sideways while blowing bubbles". It is assumed that this is merely a beach crab, but molly is terrified by the animal, symbolizing the vulnerability of human beings and how we run away from the scary things and problems in our lives rather than trying to overcome our fears. Lastly, in the fifth stanza, we are introduced to may, who seems to be the youngest or smallest in the group. To her, the world is large and overwhelming, and the "smooth round stone" she finds is the only comforting piece of the large beach and even larger ocean that she can find.
The last stanza wraps up the whole poem and generalizes it so that all readers and even Cummings himself are included in the magic and wonder that the sea brings to human beings. Although we may lose ourselves in the day-to-day rush or the overwhelming troubles we face, we can always find ourselves in the sea.
i carry your heart with me
e.e. cummings
i carry your heart with me(i carry it in
my heart)i am never without it(anywhere
i go you go,my dear; and whatever is done
by only me is your doing,my darling)
i fear
no fate(for you are my fate,my sweet)i want
no world(for beautiful you are my world,my true)
and it's you are whatever a moon has always meant
and whatever a sun will always sing is you
here is the deepest secret nobody knows
(here is the root of the root and the bud of the bud
and the sky of the sky of a tree called life;which grows
higher than the soul can hope or mind can hide)
and this is the wonder that's keeping the stars apart
i carry your heart(i carry it in my heart)
Explication: One of e.e. cummings' most famous quotes comes a speech he made in 1950, saying "Unless you love someone, nothing else makes any sense." E.E. Cummings was a lover, not a fighter. He wrote about hopeless romance, unyielding happiness, and beautiful scenes of nature and God's grace. In the poem "i carry your heart(i carry it in my heart), Cummings makes obvious his fascination with romance and love. He develops the image of a love that is untouched by by the outside world and negativity.The first stanza introduces the love that we see flourishing in the poem. Cummings use of enjambment only intensifies this growing emotion by reducing the space or punctuation between thoughts in the poem. He also shows his vulnerability when he states that he "fear[s] no fate" for if he loses the love of his life, he will have no fate. This is a simple human fear, that we will have no fate and future. In the second stanza, Cummings reveals to the reader a "deepest secret nobody knows". Through use of juxtaposition of different elements of nature combined with repetition of structure, also known as syntax, in the sentence surrounded by parenthesis, Cummings shows us a great wonder of his. He relates the wonder of how the stars can stay apart from each other to his own inability to stay away from the person he loves. Cummings wants nothing but his lover forever, for she is his world. He also references nature, such as the moon, sun, roots, buds, and the sky to emphasize the everlasting beauty and grace of the love that he is sharing with us. Cummings is famous for his use of nature references to enhance his writing and create lasting images in his poetry.Lastly, he ends the poem with a seemingly simple line. However, he is not only restating the first line of the poem, but repeating this line to create further emphasis on the meaning of the poem, that no matter where he goes or what happens in life, he will always carry the love of his soulmate with him.